Life is Easier If You're Handsome novel Chapter 152

Ding! Ding! Ding!

The bell rang, signaling the end of the first round.

The audience was in complete shock.

“...What? The first round is over already?”

“Alexei pressured Kim Donghu all the way through and took the first round.”

It was an unthinkable outcome. Everyone had expected another one-sided victory for Kim Donghu.

What the hell happened in just a few short days?

Alexei had completely outmaneuvered Donghu, relying on his overwhelming physical strength.

“Was he hiding his true power?”

While the crowd reeled from Alexei’s sudden improvement, the Olympic athletes in attendance were beginning to catch on.

Especially the boxers, who instinctively sensed that something was off.

“He’s juiced.”

“Did they buy off the judges too? How did he even pass testing?”

“Of course they bought them. It’s not like this hasn’t happened before—remember Sochi?”

But knowing the truth didn’t change anything.

The officials and commentators had probably already been paid off.

“Strength, speed, stamina—there’s nothing he’s lacking. Looks like he’s using every drug he could get his hands on.”

“The fighters know it better than anyone, but... it doesn’t look like Donghu has any intention of giving up.”

The athletes turned their eyes to Donghu, who was seated in the corner of the ring.

His eyes were sharp and unyielding, showing no trace of defeat.

But his slightly heavy breathing told a different story.

It wasn’t a matter of fatigue from stamina loss.

It was the strain of facing a chemically enhanced body.

“His arms are all swollen. Look at his triceps—they’re completely red.”

“And Alexei? He doesn’t have a single mark on him. He’s staring Donghu down like he’s already won.”

“He’s confident. Probably thinks he’s got this in the bag.”

“If it goes to a decision, Alexei wins for sure. Donghu’s only chance is a KO...”

But could anyone deliver a knockout against a fighter pumped full of drugs?

As the doubt began to creep in—

Ding!

The one-minute break ended, and both fighters touched gloves.

“Box!”

At the referee’s signal—

“Alexei’s charging in again!”

“He’s going straight for a slugfest!”

“Is he trying to end it with a knockdown too? He’s too aggressive—Donghu needs to dodge!”

But contrary to expectations that Donghu would be pushed back again—

Boom!

“Huh?”

In the blink of an eye, Alexei was down.

It wasn’t a KO.

But the look of confusion on his face said he wasn’t sure what had just happened.

Before the 10-count ended, Alexei sat down to rest until the count of nine, then stood back up.

“Box!”

The match resumed.

Still looking baffled, Alexei rushed forward again—

Boom!

But before the round could gain momentum, he went down a second time.

A second knockdown.

Olympic boxing didn’t enforce a three-knockdown rule.

But in terms of scoring, it was a massive disadvantage.

‘And more importantly, it’s a sign that a KO is coming.’

What the hell was happening?

The audience reeled in disbelief as the match continued.

*****

After the second knockdown,

Alexei felt the fear he had been suppressing slowly creeping back to the surface.

‘What the hell is going on?!’

Just a moment ago, Donghu had been struggling to counter his attacks.

What the hell did he eat between rounds to pull this off?

Under the KO rule, Alexei had up to nine seconds to rest after a knockdown.

As he caught his breath, he glanced up at Donghu.

‘What’s with those eyes...?’

They looked like the eyes of a man who had actually killed before.

‘How did I even go down?’

Alexei tried to retrace what had happened,

but he couldn’t remember anything.

All he knew was that by the time he came to his senses, he was already on the mat. freёwebnovel.com

“7! 8! 9!”

“I’m up! I’m up!”

“Can you continue? Are you okay?”

As soon as he stood at the count of nine, the referee stepped in to give him a few extra seconds of rest.

With his chemically enhanced body, Alexei recovered quickly during that brief pause.

“Okay, okay. I’m good.”

Pretending to struggle with English,

he bought himself a few more seconds before signaling his readiness.

“Box!”

The match resumed.

Alexei forced himself to forget about the two knockdowns.

He could still win by points if he just regained control.

‘Pin him in the corner and beat him down.’

That was the plan as he moved to close the distance.

But—

Bang!

His supposedly ironclad guard shattered.

A quick left hook, followed by a right hook.

The blows forced his arms upward as pain shot through them.

And then, Donghu’s signature combo.

A hook to the temple, a short uppercut, and a liver shot.

“Ugh...!”

The impact sent his mouthpiece flying.

The sheer force of the punches overwhelmed him.

And then came the third knockdown.

Scrambling, Alexei reached for his mouthpiece as—

Ding!

He checked the remaining time.

“...”

Only one minute had passed.

He had been knocked down three times in just one minute.

‘There are still two minutes left?’

He was supposed to win this match with drugs.

Why was he the one who now had to endure for two more minutes?

At this rate, the drugs didn’t even matter.

Alexei forced himself to process the unbelievable situation and stood up again.

With dulled pain receptors, endless stamina, and overwhelming strength and speed—

He should have been winning.